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connecting to the past - one family story at a timeMon, 16 Feb 2015 23:21:42 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.3Motherhood – The Journeyhttp://extremeancestry.com/motherhood-journey/
http://extremeancestry.com/motherhood-journey/#commentsSun, 03 Aug 2014 15:29:16 +0000http://extremeancestry.com/?p=2823On this day – 3 August 1975, I began the journey called “motherhood” by welcoming my son, Charles Southall Farmer III into the world.

I love this quote by Penelope Cruz about having a child; an experience I’ll remember and treasure forever –

All those cliches, those things you hear about having a baby and motherhood – all of them are true. And all of them are the most beautiful things you will ever experience.

]]>http://extremeancestry.com/motherhood-journey/feed/0Echos from a Colonial Garden: Asparagushttp://extremeancestry.com/echos-from-a-colonial-garden-asparagus/
http://extremeancestry.com/echos-from-a-colonial-garden-asparagus/#commentsSun, 25 May 2014 01:59:42 +0000http://extremeancestry.com/?p=2760The first friendly face in the colonial American garden was the perennial favorite – asparagus. Brought over from England by the earliest settlers, asparagus was an early and much welcome fresh addition to the 18th century dinner table in the spring.

The asparagus is already growing tall in the raised bed garden at colonial Daggett Farm in Greenfield Village where I serve as a historical presenter. You can see that many of the plants have been allowed to grow tall and go to seed to insure a great crop of this perennial veggie in the next year.

Anna Daggett, wife of Samuel Daggett who built the farmhouse, had responsibility for maintaining a garden large enough to raise vegetables to feed the family all year round. Even though ...

]]>http://extremeancestry.com/echos-from-a-colonial-garden-asparagus/feed/2Fresh Baked Bread from the Hearth at Daggett Farmhttp://extremeancestry.com/fresh-baked-bread-from-the-hearth-at-daggett-farm/
http://extremeancestry.com/fresh-baked-bread-from-the-hearth-at-daggett-farm/#commentsTue, 20 May 2014 18:44:08 +0000http://extremeancestry.com/?p=2713This past week was my first as a historical presenter at Daggett Farm in Greenfield Village. What an experience to live a few days in 1760 and share that experience with visitors who stopped by. There’s so much to learn about life during this time in colonial America but I think what stood out right from the start is how important the hearth is.

This over-sized fireplace may not look like much to you but in 18th century America, it provided light and energy for heating the house and cooking.

Being a “one picture worth a thousand words” kind of person, I realized how much I take modern conveniences for granted when Joan (one of the longtime presenters at Daggett Farm) taught me how to make a ...

]]>http://extremeancestry.com/fresh-baked-bread-from-the-hearth-at-daggett-farm/feed/0Dressing for Success at Daggett Farmhttp://extremeancestry.com/dressing-for-success-at-daggett-farm/
http://extremeancestry.com/dressing-for-success-at-daggett-farm/#commentsMon, 12 May 2014 21:13:18 +0000http://extremeancestry.com/?p=2680As I announced recently here on Extreme Ancestry, I’m getting ready for my new role as a historical presenter at Daggett Farm in Greenfield Village at The Henry Ford museum, Dearborn, Michigan. There’s some serious preparation for this experience and that includes being dressed for success by Katie at the Greenfield Village Studio – the museum’s amazing period clothing shop.

Everything you see at the Daggett Farm is historically correct to the food being cooked, the furniture you see and how the reenactors are dressed. That’s why experts like Katie are on hand to help dress the men and women at the farm so visitors feel like they walked back in time.

]]>http://extremeancestry.com/dressing-for-success-at-daggett-farm/feed/0My Chance to Reenact 18th Century History at Daggett Farmhttp://extremeancestry.com/my-chance-to-reenact-18th-century-history-at-daggett-farm/
http://extremeancestry.com/my-chance-to-reenact-18th-century-history-at-daggett-farm/#commentsMon, 05 May 2014 12:13:37 +0000http://extremeancestry.com/?p=2634I’ve loved history and, especially American history, my whole life. And for almost 40 years I’ve done genealogy – piecing together what’s turned out to be a fascinating and diverse collection of ancestors going back to the earliest days of this country. But up until now, my journey back through time has been mostly via the Internet, books, historical documents and old photos.

That’s about to change. For the first time, I get to reach out and touch history in a very unique way in my new role as a historical presenter at the Daggett Farm in Greenfield Village, Dearborn, Michigan.

The Daggett Farm is a working farm from 18th century colonial Connecticut that reflects the Puritan lifestyle of the Samuel ...